I wonder if Mitt will be taking in some headlines from Utah, a bastion of liberalism:

...make no mistake, the trend since the beginning of the industrial revolution and its accompanying increase in burning of coal and other fossil fuels has been warmer temperatures, and that trend is expected to continue. Ice caps are melting and oceans are warming, causing more severe weather. And policy makers must shoulder the blame.

...

President Obama tried in his first two years in the White House to gather support for some kind of policy to limit and reduce carbon emissions, but politicians worried about losing money from extraction industries thwarted him.

Now the course toward a hotter planet cannot be reversed, but the speed and intensity of the warming could still be tempered. While we wait for sensible policies, scientists are helping coastal communities plan for the inevitable rising seas and severe storms.

Congressional District Maps Challenged for 2012

The momentum resulting of a Republican majority in the Ohio House and Senate seemed at first to assure that the new congressional districts for the next decade were a "fait accompli".  However, in an effort to assure that it would not be challenged, the Republicans attached a budgetary component to the measure.  Under state law, that supposedly assures that the member can not be subject to a referendum.  However, the Ohio Supreme Court challenged that cynical maneuver, and permitted the Ohio Democratic Party to move forward with a referendum challenge of the Congressional map, gerrymandered to such an extent that it would assure 12-4 Republican-to-Democratic majority, in a state that went for President Obama in 2012.  

Chris Redfern of the Ohio Democratic Party, weighed in yesterday: 

"There will be no congressional districts as drawn," Redfern said. "Those districts have disappeared with this action and the ruling of the Ohio Supreme Court. The legislature, rather than playing political games now, should come and sit down and draw districts that fully reflect the will of the people of this state."

 This bodes well for next year's election cycle.  Previous petition drives have shown a more progressive bent to the will of the Ohio voters, who have come out strong in polls against SB5 / Issue 2, to be addressed this November, and have also signed up in sufficient numbers to put HB 194 (Voter Suppression Bill) on the ballot in November 2012. 

Key Points Against Voter Suppression Bill - HB 194

This law is part of a more comprehensive strategy to further restrict the rights of those who do not vote Republican. The content below, repurposed from this PDF, provides the talking points agains the law.  If you haven't already, put your name on one of the petitions circulating seeking the repeal of this law. 

VOTER SUPPRESSION BILL – HB 194

1. SEVERELY RESTRICTS VOTING RIGHTS & OPPORTUNITIES

• Dramatically reduces In-Person Early Voting from 35 days to 12 days (10 weekdays, 2 half-Saturdays)
• Prohibits In-Person Early Voting during the busiest 3 days of early voting (Sat/Sun/Mon)
• Cuts mail-in voting from 35 days to 21 days making it harder to receive and return a ballot in time
• Implements more aggressive registration purging without adequate assurances that qualified voters are not being removed from the rolls

2. NEEDLESSLY DISQUALIFIES ELIGIBLE VOTES

• Stricter Requirements - Requires that votes be thrown out if every single field – including full social security number – is not completed on a provisional or absentee ballot envelope.
• Throwing Out Ballots - Throws out ballots where voter intent is clear, such as when a voter fills in the oval by a candidate’s name and also writes in the same name. There were 12,207 of these votes in 2008.
• No Solution to Poll Worker Error - Instead of finding a solution to determining poll worker error in provisional voting, the bill presumes voter error instead of error by trained poll workers. Poll worker error will continue to cause ballots to be thrown out.
• Creates more provisional voting - Increases the number of provisional ballots, which are less likely to be properly counted, by eliminating the requirement that poll workers will be required to direct voters to their correct precinct and by prohibiting poll workers form helping voters complete forms.

3. ELIMINATES LOCAL CONTROL & REQUIRES “ONE‐SIZE‐FITS‐ALL” APPROACH

• Prohibits setting up satellite locations for early voting unless 3 of 4 members approve
• Prohibits setting early vote hours that make sense for the county even though some counties have fewer than 15,000 residents and others have more than 1,000,000 residents.
• Prohibits mailing of absentee ballot request forms to all registered voters to shorten election day lines and add convenience for busy working voters as well as elderly voters
• Prohibits paying for postage for ballot return to ensure voters complete voting process

Prayers for Ron Otting

Ron is the guiding spirit for Democrats in Greenhills.  Keep him and his family in your prayers.

Date: Fri, 5 Nov 2010 15:58:17 -0400
Subject: URGENT Prayer Request for Ron Otting
Get this out to everyone, please. We just received if from the church.

Chris Newcomer just called to request that we all hold Ron Otting and his family in our prayers. Ron is a former Mayor of Greenhills, taught in Greenhills High School for years and long time resident of our community. Ron unexpectedly passed out at Marsh’s yesterday, due to heart failure, and is currently in an induced coma at Mercy Fairfield. Please keep him and the whole family in your prayers this weekend.

Chris Visnich, Friday Sec.

Now is the Time to Jump Start the Our Club

It's readily apparent that the lack of a organizational structure for the Greenhills Democratic Club is a pending opportunity. Now is the time to jump start that effort, targeting a very active 2012 cycle for regional and national candidates. Let us know if you you are interested, by sending us email to greenhillsdems@gmail.com.

Sample Ballet for Greenhills Voters - 2010 Election

Click on the image below to see a slightly bigger image of the sample ballot. The candidates for Greenhills are highlighted in yellow.